Long before the Greeks and the Romans created the monumental architecture that serves as the ceremonial backdrop for much of American democracy — including today’s inauguration, of course — the Egyptians created an equally impressive building style. Now the Experiential Technologies Center at the University of California at Los Angeles has released a digital reconstruction of one of the most famous Egyptian temple complexes, at Karnak.
The project takes advantage of decades of scholarship but also the latest technology, incorporating photos, videos, animated timelines, and Google Earth imagery. The site offers information on the architecture of the complex, built — and frequently changed — over a period of more than 2,000 years, as well as information on how it was constructed, the rituals and festivals that took place there, and the significance of various elements, which included temples, courtyards, and even a sacred lake.
The site’s details are engaging. For instance, photographs show erased stone carvings that were originally images of a queen, Hatshepsut, who built and remodeled extensively at Karnak after the death of her husband, the pharaoh Thutmose II (who was also her half-brother). She was initially regent for the pharoah’s heir, Thutmose III, but after several years she declared herself pharoah and had herself represented as male.
Some 20 years after her death, and long after Thutmose III had regained the throne, representations of her were defaced and much of what she built was changed. Scholars speculate that this may have been an effort to rewrite history — a coverup, if you will, that attempted to hide what had been a bad precedent for the way power changed hands. —Lawrence Biemiller
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